nevada recently said they're going to have their caucus on the 14th of january. new hampshire has a state law that says they have to do it the week before. new hampshire is running out of room, where is the real estate? so they're asking nevada to move their caucus back. if not, the secretary of new hampshire says, guess what? we could have the primary in early or mid-december. i don't think anybody wants that. stay tuned. that does it for us. thanks so much for joining us. we're back here bright and early tomorrow morning 9:00 a.m. fredricka filling in. good morning. >> have a great afternoon. >> be careful as you walk in your louboutins. >> i have to learn these fancy names. i'm a dsw kind of girl. live from studio 7, i'm fredricka whitman in for kyra

malveaux. the u.s. says opening korean markets to american automakers and farmers will create 280,000 jobs. more next hour when president obama and lee hold a news conference at the white house and you'll see it live here on cn this. in libya today, the battle for sirte has come down to a few streets. [ gunfire ] >> sirte is among the last towns to keep fighting for muammar gadhafi, the former libyan ruler. it's his tribal home and fiercely loyal. it will declare them liberated once it declares all of sirte. our dan rivers is there. >> reporter: like the troops we're with, we try to stay out of the line of fire. sometimes the bullets come out of nowhere.

comfortably close, even battle hardened soldiers flinch sometimes. >> libyan fighters claim they have captured one of gadhafi's sons in sirte. that has not been confirmed. such reports have been wrong in the past. and freed american hikers shane bower and josh fattal will meet with secretary of state hillary clinton this afternoon. iran held the men prisoner for more than two years before releasing them just last month. sarah shourd, who was held with the pair for one year, will join them at the u.s. state department. paris prosecutors have dropped a sexual assault case against dominique strauss-kahn. they said there wasn't enough evidence to accuse him. this summer prosecutors raised doubts about the woman's

credibility in that case. the trial of michael jackson's doctor resumes shortly. it's possible prosecutors could rest today. experts have testified that jackson would be alive if dr. conrad murray stuck with customary standards of medical care. they say anesthesia isn't a sleep aid. >> when you monitor a patient, you never leave their side, especially after giving propofol. it's like leaving a baby that's sleeping on your kitchen countertop. >> murray's defense team no longer claims jackson overdosed by drinking propofol. the anesthesia is apparently effective by mouth. the defense claims that jackson injected himself. a man opened fire at a hair

salon. eight people were killed. police arrested the suspect a few blocks away. officers say he had several guns in his car. the los angeles times reports that the suspect was locked in a bitter custody fight with his ex-wife. they report she is among the dead. research in motion announce aid short time ago it has restored blackberry service to all customers worldwide. there have been outages from the u.s. to the middle east since monday. rim says a backup computer system failed and it doesn't know why. >> i apologize for the service outages this week. we've let many of you down. but let me assure you that we're working round the clock to fix this. >> and rim says no customer e-mails have been lost and that you will get them eventually. about half of the 70 million blackberry users around the world had trouble. another kid? in this economy? well, many americans say not a good idea. a study by the peer research

center says u.s. birth rates that fallen steadily since 2007. by the time 2010 rolled around, there were 300,000 fewer births. now your chance to talk back on one of today's big stories. republican presidential candidate herman cain has pulled ahead of the pack in a new national poll for the very first time. the nbc wall street journal poll shows cain with a four-point lead over mitt romney but can he stay ahead and win the gop nomination. that's today's question. carol joins me in new york. carol, first it was romney, then bachmann, then rick perry, now romney again. now it's cain's turn. he's going to be a volatile race, to say the least. but anything can happen, right? >> to say the least.

herman cain, once an afterthoug afterthought, is now leading mitt romney by four points in a new nbc wall street journal poll. republicans seem drawn to his debate skills, his straight talk, and, of course, 999. >> we have an economic crisis, this is why i propose a 999 plan. you know you're doing something right when you get a lot of -- >> you betcha. he now has something far more important. he's everywhere. on "the view," on leno, on letterman. >> she took on herman cain's 999 plan. look at this. >> you're never going to get rid of it. and one thing i would say is when you take the 999 plan and you turn it upside down, i think the devil is in the details. >> you got to let me respond.

>> we'll give you several chances to respond. i'll come back. >> that's right. >> i'm sorry, i couldn't resist. some analysts say cain's popularity have more to do with voters wanting anyone but mitt romney. the republican party is like the wizard of oz. rick perry wants a brain, mitt romney wants a heart and herman cain is seeking courage to face the fact he's never going to be the republican nominee no matter how well he does in the polls. he needs the courage to settle for something far better than the presidency, his own show on fox. so the talk-back question today, is cain able to go the distance? facebook/carol@cnn. i'll read your responses in the next hour. >> i know you're going to get a whole lot. here's what's ahead on the

rundown next. a big apology from the maker of blackberry smartphones. we'll find out why millions of people had to go without full e-mail or internet service for days. a city files for bankruptcy protection, but the mayor says they can't. we'll have a live report from harrisburg, pennsylvania. plus the american auto industry has been pushing hard for free trade agreement with south korea, but what do south koreans think? >> first of all, he says, parking spaces in korea are made to fit korean cars. european and japanese cars are okay, the big american cars will have problems. a cardiologist says michael jackson might have lived if 911 had been called sooner. we'll get the latest from the involuntary manslaughter trial of dr. conrad murray. and finally, radiation levels spike in a tokyo neighborhood. why the damaged power plant in fukushima may not be the source. meineke's personal pricing on brakes.

i tell you what i can spend. i do my best to make it work. i'm back on the road safely. and i saved you money on brakes. that's personal pricing. the company research in motion says blackberry service is now fully restored. an executive with the company says it has fix the the outage that left millions without e-mail or internet service worldwide. take a look at how the problem spread across the globe over the last three days. it had such a huge impact because there are about 70 million blackberry users around the world. dan simon joins us live from san francisco. blackberry says the problem is fixed, but are there still people who can't get their e-mails, et cetera? >> well, i think we'll have a better idea as the day goes on. you're right, blackberry now saying that service is total retotally

restored, but we'll see what people on social media have to say. it took three days to solve, which is really unacceptable from blackberry's point of view and from their service point of view. what happened was there was a problem with what they say is their core switch, and this started in europe and it spread across the country. i want you to listen now to blackberry ceo who issued this mea culpa earlier today. take a look. >> since launching blackberry in 1999, it's been my goal to provide reliable, realtime communications around the world. we did not deliver on that goal this week. not even close. i apologize for the service outages this week. we've let many of you down. but let me assure you that we're working round the clock to fix this. >> reporter: there are two problems here. there is the service problem and then there is the public relations problem. i would suggest that the pr problem is more severe for blackberry. obviously you have a lot of competitors nipping at their

heels. blackberry once owned this category a few years ago, now they're in third place behind google's android system and behind the iphone which their new phone goes on sale on friday, apple generating a lot of buzz, and blackberry not generating a lot of buzz and bad pr lately. >> how does blackberry being down may have impacted productivity at so many businesses and so many people rely on it? >> it's a good question. so many companies provide employees with blackberries, and the fact that employees couldn't access e-mail is a huge problem, so you wonder what, you know, steps companies will take. will they issue employees different phones? blackberry have always prided themselves on the fact they had a more secure service and a more reliable service than their competitors. that's what they had going for them. now that appears to be weakened somewhat, and you're right, the question is how will companies

structure things going forward? >> while blackberry or rim is saying we're still not quite sure how this all happened, is it possible that hackers could have been involved? are they looking into that? >> you know, one of the big problems here is, you know, as rim has been talking about this for the last couple of days is they've never identified what caused their server to go out. the one thing they have said is that this was not a hacking issue. so i guess there is some comfort in knowing that people aren't able to access their service from the outside, but a little disconcerting that they haven't figured out the issue or at least they haven't said so publicly. >> all right of the dan simo simon, -- all right. dan simon, thanks so much. federal investigators are trying to find out what caused one amtrak train to slam into another last night in oakland, california. the train that was hit was taking on and letting off passengers.

at least 18 people were injured. in texas, storms packing winds up to 65 miles an hour caused quite a bit of damage around houston. at least one person was injured when a tree crashed into her mobile home. it's possible a tornado touched down. and these students in connecticut are trying to help break the guinness world record for most jumping jacks done in a minute. the worldwide challenge is part of first lady michelle obama's let's move campaign to fight childhood obesity. more than 20,425 people had to jump for 40 seconds between noon tuesday and noon wednesday. no word yet if there is a new record. all right, these tough economic times have had a big impact on state and local governments all across the country. pennsylvania's capital city of harrisburg is so broke that it can't pay its bills. and now the city council has voted to fight for bankruptcy protection. allison kosik is with us now from harrisburg.

allison, why is the city so broke and is bankruptcy the best answer? >> you know, fredricka, the interesting part about this situation for harrisburg is you would think they're in this predicament because of the recession or the slowing economy, but that's really not the case. you know, harrisburg filed for bankruptcy because of a trash incinerator, of all things. this trash incinerator was bakely built on borrowed fund and continued to be updated and upgraded on borrowed funds as well. it put the city of harrisburg in the hole, i'm talking debtwise, to the tune of $310 million, and harrisburg found itself unable to pay for its debt. so it went ahead and voted a few days ago to go ahead and file for bankruptcy. that was the city council voting. it was not a unanimous decision. it definitely sparked a lot of political debate. one councilman that i talked to said it was really the best decision in a very difficult

situation. >> i'm up for election in four weeks, all right? this is the popular or practical cal thing to do, sticking my neck out there? if it was popular or practical, i would keep my mouth shut so i can make sure i win my election. nobody is sticking up for the people of harrisburg, not the bond holders, not the election, not the city. we've got to make this better than it is right now and five years down the reside. >> so the dysfunctional political environment continues here. the mayor of harrisburg, linda thompson, is going to be challenging the city council to file bankruptcy. it may ultimately be up to a judge to decide if this will go through. fredricka? >> overall, how will this impact basic city services? >> right now it's not going to impact anything, everything is pretty much frozen. what could happen in the discussion is some residents could see their property taxes hiked from anywhere from 9 to

20%, because when they sit down at that bankruptcy table, they're going to have to give a little and raise some money in addition to working out the numbers with their creditors, fredricka. >> so what happened? it wasn't long ago that harrisburg was touted for having lots of jobs, a rather stable economy. what happened in a short amount of time? and we're talking just a year or so. >> yeah. i mean, you look at harrisburg. it is the state capital. it's being held up by state government jobs. that's really a stabilizing factor in this economy. but the fact is, this is really a product -- talking about the bankruptcy is really a product of bad decisions. the fact that filing for bankruptcy truly hinged on the success or failure of this trash incinerator shows that some bad decisions were made in building this trash incinerator up as a revenue-producing project, fredricka. >> allison kosik, thanks so much. the housing market is still taking a big hit from foreclosures, and they're up again in the third quarter.

we'll go live to the new york stock exchange to find out what caused the increase. but first, did you know president obama's jobs plan, which was shot down in the u.s. senate, would have extended unemployment benefits. how many americans will lose benefits come january if something else isn't done. the answer in a moment. i'm really glad we took this last minute trip! you booked our room right? not yet, thanks for reminding me. wait, what? i have the hotels.com app so we can get a great deal even at the last minute. ah, well played get the app. tels.com.

before the break we asked, how many americans will lose unemployment benefits in january if congress doesn't pass an extension? the answer, 1.8 million americans. that's just in january. a total of 6 million will lose unemployment benefits sometime in 2012. in time we continue to watch

your money at cnnmoney.com where the top story today, blackberry, the outage that so many millions experienced over a three-day period. top story now, blackberry executive saying, we're sorry, and we're still trying to get to the bottom of why that happened. we're also watching the markets where the dow is down 126 points. we'll keep you posted throughout the afternoon. in the meantime, foreclosures are still causing a big drain on the housing market. they were up slightly in the third quarter. corinna is with us from the stock market. why were there so many foreclosures? >> we saw foreclosures jump to 610,000 in the period from july to september. that's up less than 1% from the second quarter, but it's notable because we actually saw foreclosures going down, not up. what's at play here? remember we had that whole robo signing period where banks were signing off on mortgages without looking at the paperwork, so

falsely foreclosing on some people? that process was stopped so we saw basically a backlog of foreclosures. now that the banks have gone through the paperwork, we're seeing a pickup in foreclosures, so that's really the pickup in the number. >> we're also seeing a backlog of foreclosures. what's that doing to this foreclosure process overall? >> well, overall, of course, this is not a good thing. it's a very painful process, it's making things very slow. i mean, the average amount of time that passes from a foreclosure filing to the actual foreclosure is 336 days. ask in no and in new york, it can take up to three years. tha that is the state that has the longest process. for the homeowner it's a very unusual period, and for the market, as we have this glut of inventory, we can't get prices to rebound, so it might be a while before we see a turnaround in housing.

fredricka? >> all right, corrina, thank you so much. we're hearing from the florida man accused of hacking some celebrities. chris cheney hacked into the electronic devices of 50 people including actress scarlet johanssen and christina aguilera. he uploaded nude photos of some of the celebrities on line. what started out as a security soon turned into a strong addiction. >> so what would you do with the information you found in those e-mails? >> nothing. i mean, it was almost like reading a completely unsensored blog. i wasn't saving archives of e-mails to maybe blackmail someone. >> cheney is charged with 26 counts and could be looking at years in prison if convicted. cementing the biggest trade agreement in the u.s. in almost 20 years, south korea's president is at the white house right now. we'll look at his visit and what

the free trade deal means for the u.s. auto industry. but first, can you answer this? are there more people or wireless devices in the u.s.? the answer in a moment. [ tires screech ] ♪ oh, it was the first time i fell in love ♪ ♪ the first time i felt my heart ♪ [ man ] people say i'm forgetful. [ horn honking ] ♪ ...all through the night [ man ] maybe that's why we go to so many memorable places. ♪ [ male announcer ] the subaru outback. love the road you're on.

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before the break, we asked you a question about which outnumbers the other in the u.s., people or wireless devices? what did you guess? the answer, wireless devices. there are 327 million of them in service. that's 15 million more phones and tablets than there are people in this country. here's a rundown of some of the stories we're working on next. would a new free trade agreement with south america hurt or help auto workers? then a doctor testifies that michael jackson would be alive today if dr. conrad murray had called 911 sooner. we'll have the latest on the trial. and later, why radiation levels are spiking in a tokyo neighborhood. but first, pomp and circumstance mixed with some rain this morning at the white house as president obama welcomed his south korean counterpart, lee myung bok in

his first visit to the united states. they start in the oval office and then go to the cabinet room for expanded talks with u.s. and korean delegations, and the next hour, you will hear from both leaders at a joint news conference in the rose garden. the visit smencements a long-ded trade deal. they cemented free trade agreements last night with south korea, colombia and panama. they said the south korean deal could create as many as 280,000 jobs and boost exports by as much as $12 billion. but some labor unions say the deals will actually hurt u.s. employment because of increased competition from south korean imports. the auto industry is one sector to watch. paula hancock reports on what this might mean for u.s. and korean car makers.

>> chung su bought his chevrolet three years ago. since then he's been a big fan of the u.s. car, even joining a chevrolet club. but he's not convinced it will lead to an influx in chevrolets in korea. first of all, he says parking spaces in korea are made to fit korean cars. european and japanese cars are okay. the big american cars will have problems. the korean market san attractive one for the u.s. given the phenomenal explosion in car ownership here. back in 1990, there were just over 3 million vehicles on the road. 20 years later, there were almost 18 million. that's an increase of more than 400%. environmental concerns could make some u.s. models undesirable in an increasingly green korea. as part of the fta agreement, korea agreed to lower its strict emission and safety requirements

in some cases. car design is also a factor. one fta expert tells me when koreans buy cars, they look for style, design and convenience. big powerful cars like in the u.s. are not seen as stylish here, so i don't expect a surge in demand for u.s. cars. car parts companies decline to talk about the fta, saying the topic was too sensitive. but korean's protection agency says kotra will benefit. they have said gm will increase auto parts to $1 billion from the current $700 million. and ford predicts imports rising more than 20% in the next ten years. korean cars are expected to travel well, but for now, experts assume u.s. car fans like chung could remain in the minority in korea.

paula hancock, cnn, seoul. they plan to hold a joint news conference right here in the newsroom, and they'll be doing that in the white house east room, not in the rose garden. it is a little rainy out there. so now it will be in the east room, by the way. you can watch it live right here 12:20 eastern time. potentially damaging testimony against michael jackson's doctor. an expert witness calls conrad murray's treatment of jackson bizarre and said it definitely caused the singer's death. we'll break down what all this means from the defense in particular. but first, sunday is world food day. it's meant to raise awareness about the millions of people who don't have enough to eat. entertainer christina aguilera is on a personal mission to fight hunger. she recently traveled to haiti and guatemala with the world food program. >> hi, i'm christina aguilera, and we can make an impact on world hunger.

well, after i had my son max, i realized this was a huge issue. i went to a trip to guatemala with world food program and saw women and children living in these dirt huts that have nothing. it's just so crucial and vital for these people to get nutrition. haiti was devastating because of the earthquake. i got to meet so many young people that were just so eager to learn, and you could see their faces light up. every child deserves the chance to dream and to hope. join the movement. go to cnn.com/impact. an airline has planes and people. and the planes can seem the same. so, it comes down to the people. because: bad weather, the price of oil those are every airline's reality. and solutions will not come from 500 tons of metal and a paintjob. they'll come from people.

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♪ the involuntary manslaughter trial of michael jackson's personal physician is said to resume in just a few minutes in los angeles.

an anesthesiologist is expected to testify that dr. conrad murray's treatment of michael jackson was so negligent that it was criminal in his view. that's the testimony of a cardiologist and a sleep expert yesterday who described dr. murray's behavior as bizarre and extreme medical measures. >> giving propofol without a modern setting, without personnel, without appropriate monitoring, without the appropriate equipment, not being prepared, not doing -- not appropriately reacting to an arrest, not calling 911 in a timely fashion all directly impacted his life. because if these deviations were to have happened, mr. jackson would have been alive. >> criminal defense attorney and former prosecutor holly hughes is here right now.

holly, the testimony from that cardiologist seemed quite damaging. he actually took it further, saying it's like leaving a baby unattend otaenattended on a cou doctor to have left michael jackson after administering drugs. >> absolutely. and the most powerful thing about this is this is really the first time, fred, that we've heard the words "michael jackson would have been alive." but for dr. murray's care or lack thereof, this great pop icon would have survived. this is incredibly damaging. this is not you're a little bit negligent, this is you're so grossly negligent that you are responsible directly for the death. >> a fellow cardiologist saying, i know this as a cardiologist, you should have known this as a cardiologist. >> and board certified. the doctor who testified yesterday, he's board certified, so right there he's got a leg up on dr. murray who is not board

certified for whatever reason, we don't know. whether he couldn't pass them, didn't take them, we don't know. but we do know that dr. steinberg is moran expert and has accomplished for in his field. >> so the defense will have an opportunity to respond to this, whether it be by testimony or perhaps some other evidence because the prosecution may be ending its case sometime this week. what can the defense possibly say to counter what we've heard? >> well, what they're going to do is they're going to have their own experts. you better believe that this trial is going to come down to a battle of the experts, fred. what the defense is looking for is an expert who will say, yes, dr. murray might not have done everything exactly the way another doctor would have, but it is not the cause of michael jackson's death. they're still going to go with mr. jackson did this to himself, and dr. murray couldn't have possibly foreseen that mr. jackson would go and take those drugs without him being present. >> and the defense is going to say did it to himself where at

first the defense was going to say mr. jackson injected this in himself when dr. murray left the room. now there is a bit of a reversal, he may have done this to himself by injection. they're changing their scenario? >> typically we would think that. you said a in the beginning and now you're switching to b midstream. jurors don't really hold that against defense attorneys. they have to look at all the evidence and now they're stuck with the testimony that there was not a milky residue of the white substance in his mouth, in his airways, in his passages where he would have swallowed it. >> and taking it orally would not have caused death even if it had happened. >> exactly. it's probably a combination of the two. a good defense attorney looks at the evidence as it comes in, and they say, hey, based on what's in front of the jury now, we're going to have to switch it up, and they're allowed to do that. that's a perfectly reasonable

thing to do, and it all comes down in this case to those closing arguments. >> what's your expectation of who the defense would need to bring forward to be able to save dr. conrad murray's life? >> i think what you're going to see is you're going to see a couple different medical experts, one who will probably testify about standard of care, and while it may not be what we'd all like to have, it may not be the ultimate pinnacle of care, it's not as negligent as the state says. they're probably going to call another cardiologist to back up dr. murray and say he acted appropriately. he did what he could, and, you know, i wouldn't be surprised if we don't see a third, maybe sleep doctor, who says i do use propofol for sleep. because for every expert out there that says black, you can find one that says white. it absolutely happens, that's why we have an adversarial system. the state says yes, the defense says no, and you can find somebody who will back you up. i think we'll see a couple

different experts go to those points that dr. murray is not the cause of michael jackson's death, even if you think he's not the best doctor in the world and you don't want him to be your personal physician. >> thank you very much, holly hughes. >> thanks, fred. if you want to see gavel to gavel coverage, you can tune in to our sister network, hln. he's not running for president, but is governor chris christie interested in being the gop's number two? here's what he has to say. [ male announcer ] it's simple physics... a body at rest tends to stay at rest... while a body in motion tends to stay in motion.

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are at increased risk for stomach bleeding and ulcers. do not take celebrex if you've had an asthma attack, hives, or other allergies to aspirin, nsaids or sulfonamides. get help right away if you have swelling of the face or throat, or trouble breathing. tell your doctor your medical history and find an arthritis treatment for you. visit celebrex.com and ask your doctor about celebrex. for a body in motion. jay leno has a complaint about the music at the republican presidential debates. it's today's punchline. >> have you noticed during these

debates the more boring the candidates are, the more dramatic and exciting the music is? this is the actual music from last night's debate. listen to it. ♪ >> now, see, for that kind of music, this is what the candidates should look like. all right. fundraising for the president's reelection campaign is exceeding even some democrats' expectations. pierre hamby is live from the political desk in washington. how much has been raised?

>> the total number for barack obama's reelection campaign is a combined $70 million over the last three months. that's less than the last quarter earlier this year, but it's still a substantial amount of money. the breakdown is 42 million directly for the president's campaign itself and also the democratic national committee collected $27.3 million. they're going to go out there. they have said obama is going to raise a billion dollars for this election. this doesn't quite put him on pace to do that, but he is farther ahead of his opponents. a lot of these independent groups, these super packs, some of these irs groups are going to be spending a ton of outside money in this election. you know, they can raise and spend unlimited sums. some of these groups don't have to report their donors, so these republican groups can go outside of the campaign and really hammer barack obama in the

general election. sees got to stock a massive war chest, fredricka, and this is just the start. >> meantime, people are still talking about governor chris christie. he said, you know what, i wouldn't be the best number two. what does he say about the notion of being a vice presidential nominee? >> this is going to happen for the next year, and we love talking about chris christie, obviously. he was asked in new jersey after he came out to new hampshire yesterday and endorsed mitt romney. at a press conference, they asked him, would you leave the state before your term is up and be vp? here's what he had to say. >> there are certain personalities that are appropriate to be vice president. i don't know that mine typically fits in that mold, you know. i think there might be other folks who, by their disposition, are more appropriately suited for vice president. >> and, you know, he's kind of right. chris christie speaks his mind,

he's very blunt, and when you're the vice presidential nominee, your job is to be on message, generally raise money for your nominee, you're an attack dog, you go out there but you stick to the message. chris christie has always kind of gone his own way. again, he'll definitely be on the short list. he's immensely popular among activists, but i think number one continues to be mark arubio. he checks a lot of boxes. but chris christie will definitely be on the short list. >> thanks so much. for the latest political news, you know exactly where to go. cnnpolitics.com. we've got a little advice for the next time you fly ryanrarrya ryanair, you better go before you go. there is a toilet shortage at

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asked what's more popular -- playing chess, joining a fantasy sports league or joining a book club? the answer -- joining a fantasy sports league. this tidbit from the u.s. census bureau's 2012 statistical abstract. you've been sounding off on today's "talk back" question, is herman cain able to go the distance? carol costello, what are people saying? >> i'm still getting over the fact that you thought the most popular club would be a book

club. >> trying to read my mind? wrong. >> people want escapism. >> here goes. "talk back" question today, can herman cain get distance? that was the question today. steve -- i think he can. his ideas are unique and different. think america is tired of the same legislation repackaged with a different label, "d" or "r." someone who talks about reforming tax codes and making it simpler instead of talking about more tax cuts and sock it to the rich tax cuts. harry -- love the potion 999. the rich don't need anymore help. danny -- i hope he gets the nomination because he and his wacko tax plan would be easy to beat. who needs the rich and big corporations paying half the tax

i'm saying? where do you have that? 9% for the rich, 9% for me, 9% sales tax equals 18%. i'm on social security. i can't afford that. melanie -- cain 2012. he will be our next president. the 999 will work because it will lower the price to make -- lower the price of items and you'll not have money taken out of your paycheck. jim -- we need to see a broader spectrum of cain's views on foreign policy, immigration and others before we know he's the real deal. and this -- herman cain is an intelligent man who can do anything he wants to do. people need to be aware of the forecasting. many people said senator obama would not be the democratic nominee for many reasons. who's the president today? look out. herman cain could do an obama on us. keep the conversation going. facebook.com/carolcnn. i'll be back in about 20 minutes. carol, don't go away. you have to pay attention to what i'm about to tell you about. this is corporate cost cutting

gone mad. is it? ryan air. europe's short-haul budget airline is cutting back on toilets. instead of three, a plane will have just one. one toilet for almost 200 passengers to fight over. ryan air said it can cram six more seats on the plane and maybe shave $3 off a ticket. >> 3 bucks? >> have to go before you get on the plane and before it goes. >> it only shaves $3 off the ticket? i would rather pay $3 for a ticket to have a bathroom. >> but the airline could get six more passengers on. they're making more money. >> i know. i totally get that. but i just can't imagine that. like what if there is a delay and you're stuck on the runway for a couple of hours? >> there is going to be a really long line or a lot of crossed legs. >> it is going to be a riot.

>> that, too. we'll find another way. maybe you just have to walk. right? let's talk about japan now. there's a new very serious radiation concern there today. an extremely high level has been detected in tokyo. we'll check in with chad meyers tracking the story for us. you name it. i've tried it. but nothing helped me beat my back pain. then i tried salonpas. it's powerful relief that works at the site of pain and lasts up to 12 hours. salonpas.

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of radiation in a central tokyo neighborhood. in fact, it's higher, apparently, than the level around the nuclear plant that was damaged when the earthquake and tsunami hit. chad meyers tracking this story for us. this is very unsettling for a lot of people. this is what many people feared in japan. >> they are on edge from a number of other sources as well. this radiation they found in the upper east side of new york city in tokyo. it is a very posh area of tokyo. it was very high, so high that people could be nowhere near it -- they had been evacuating now 80,000 people from this area. when they went in and said where did this come from, did it really come 140 miles from fukushima all the way down into tokyo, into this neighborhood? they said, no, probably not. so they went looking for the source and in fact here's some of the pictures where they were looking at. these readings on these -- the

meters were so high that was off the chart. so where could this come from? actually, they found bottles under the floorboards of an abandoned building and the bottles were emitting all of this radiation. clearly not the same radiation that came out of the reactor. not the radiation that people fear around that fukushima daiichi plant. a different -- completely different type of radiation but still, they have to get these bottles out of the way and the reason why they found it is because tokyo -- these people are buying $1,000 detectors and walking around their neighborhoods looking for this radiation. so this is a big deal. yes -- >> what's in the bottles? >> the latest i just read out of the "ajc" is that bottles contain a chemical that in the old times they'd paint these little notches on the watch and that paint was radioactive. that radioactive may be what's in those bottles so if they get

those bottles out and remove it, then the radiation will go away. >> they going to try to track down the bottles' origin? they came from where? that is so odd. wow. people are probably happy to hear where the source is come from but still want to know how it got there and why them after all they've been through. thanks, chad. appreciate that. top of the hour now. i'm fredricka whitfield. let's get you up to speed. president obama and his counterpart from south korea are set to speak to reporters in about 20 minutes from now. you'll see the news conference live here on cnn. the south korean leader is in washington for a state visit. he arrived just hours after congress approved a trade deal with his country. the obama administration predicts it will create 280,000 new jobs. people in seal beach, california say they are in shock today. a man walked into a salon, then opened fire wednesday. eight people were killed. police identify the suspect as

this man. they haven't given a motive but the "los angeles times" reports the man was locked in a custody battle with his ex-wife. our affiliate ktla reports she is among those killed. >> as you all know, seal beach is a small, safe community and we don't experience these things, ever. it's been a long time since we had something -- we don't very often have homicides, especially anything of this magnitude. >> one shooting victim remains in critical condition today. in libya today, the battle for sirte has come down to a few streets. sirte is among the last towns to keep fighting for moammar gadhafi. the former libyan ruler.

it is his tribal home and fiercely loyal. the new government says it will declare libya liberated once it controls all of sirte. our dan rivers is there. >> reporter: like the troops we're with, we try to stay out of the line of fire. sometimes the bullets come out of nowhere. comfortably close, even battle-hardened soldiers flinch sometim sometimes. >> libyan fighters claim they have captured one of gadhafi's sons in sirte. that has not been confirmed. such reports have been wrong in the past. and research in motion, that's a company that operates blackberry, they say blackberry service is back for all customers worldwide. r.i.m. says a back-up computer system failed and it doesn't know why. blackberry service went on the fritz monday in europe, africa and the middle east. by tuesday outages spread to south america. then wednesday, north america. about a half -- half a million

blackberry users were without service. in the conrad murray trial, jurors are hearing from experts about dr. conrad murray's use of a anesthesia at jackson's home. these experts argue jackson should never have been left alone. >> you never leave a patient's side when you give propofol. it is like leaving a baby that's sleeping on your kitchen countertop. >> murray's defense team no longer claims jackson overdosed by drinking propofol.

the anesthesia isn't effective by mouth, they say jackson injected himself. in paris, france, prosecutors dropped a sexual assault case against dominique strauss-khan. a french journalist accused him of trying to rape her during an interview in 2003. a similar case against strauss-khan in new york collapsed this summer when prosecutors raised doubts about the woman's credibility. this florida man is due in court tomorrow on hacking charges. federal authorities say christopher cheney broke in to e-mails of young hollywood starlets. nude photos of some of the celebrities turned up on the internet. cheney claims he was addicted to hacking. >> so what would you do with the information you found in those e-mails? >> just nothing. i mean it was almost like reading a completely uncensored blog. i mean i wasn't saving archives of e-mails to make blackmail someone. >> if convicted on all counts,

chaney could be sentenced to 121 years in prison. federal health authorities say 23 people have now died from contaminated cantaloupe. melons from a colorado farm were infected with the bacteria listeria. the cantaloupe was recalled a month ago but symptoms can take weeks to show up. federal experts say 116 people across 25 states have fallen ill from the bad cantaloupe. listeria is particularly dangerous for older people and pregnant women. more now on the deadly shootings in a california hair salon. police are trying to figure out why a man walked into the shop, then opened fire. eight people were killed and another person is in critical condition. there are reports that the suspect was in a custody fight with his ex-wife. it happened in seal beach, a quiet community near los angeles. the suspect is in custody on murder charges now.

the suspect's next-door neighbor is with us. she saw him before the shootings. tell us a little bit more about how he appeared to be before those shootings that day. >> well, i mean he seemed pretty normal. i mean when i left for work, like another normal day. i waved hi. he said, hey, neighbor. you know. i left for work and had no clue that it was probably going to be the last time i was ever going to talk to him. where his mindset even was. >> even prior to yesterday, in any way, shape or form, stephanie, did you ever know or suspect that anything was troubling him? did he ever express anything to you, frustrations, anger, anything? >> no. i mean every time i saw him he seemed like he was really happy in his new marriage. i mean he seemed like everything was fine. i mean he was always talking about how he loved his son and

as far as i knew he basically had full custody of his son for the last two, three years almost. >> so you didn't know their that there may have been a custody battle involving his son with his ex-wife? >> no. i wasn't aware until yesterday when i got home from work. i mean as far as i knew, i mean he mainly had custody of his son and he had told me that the ex-wife only saw the son maybe one or two weekends a month. >> so based on what you knew of him as a neighbor, when you heard that he allegedly open fire at the salon, tell me what went through your mind. >> i was in complete shock. i mean i kind of still am. i couldn't believe that out of everybody in my neighborhood it would have been him. he seemed like the genuine really nice neighbor. i mean obviously with this now kind of makes you wonder how well do you really know people? because he was always so helpful

and i mean always hey, is there anything i can do, super friendly to everybody. he was like the neighborhood watch in our community. he seemed like an all-around good neighbor. i would never, ever have thought that he would do something like this. >> so then post-shooting last night, in the neighborhood, at his house, what kind of activity did you see? >> well, once i got home from work, i mean the police pretty much had his entire driveway closed off with police tape and everything and they were doing a full i guess investigation of the home tland was obviously news vans all up and down my street. i was just in total shock. i just couldn't believe something like this would happen in my own neighborhood. i mean it is a pretty quiet little neighborhood here. i mean stuff like this just doesn't happen. >> stephanie, thanks so much for your time. >> no problem.

thank you. now your chance to "talk back" on one of today's biggest stories. republican presidential candidate herman cain has pulled ahead of the pack in a new national poll for the very first time. the nbc/"wall street journal" poll shows cain with a four-point lead over mitt romney but can he stay ahead and win the gop nomination? that's the "talk back" question today. carol costello joining us now from new york. first it was romney, michelle bomb man, then rick perry, then romney, now it is cain's turn. >> it is an interesting primary, isn't it? or it will be once people actually vote. it seems like we already have, i know. herman cain though, once an afterthought, now leads mitt romney by four points in a new nbc/"wall street journal" poll. republicans seem drawn to his debating skills, his straight talk and of course, 999. >> we have an economic crisis. this economy is on life support.

this is why i propose my 999 plan. it attracted a lot of attention at the debates last night. you know you must be doing something right when you get a lot of. -- >> you bet that. cain now has something far more important -- pub. cain is everywhere, on the "view. >> you're never going to get rid of it. when you take the 999 plan and you turn it upside down? i think the devil's in the details. >> we've given you several chances to respond. i'll come back to you. >> that's right. >> that makes me laugh every time i see it. seriously though. some analysts say cain's popularity has more to do with voters wanting anyone but mitt

romney than cain himself. roger simon writes on politico.com, the republican party is like the wizard of oz. rick perry wants a brain, mitt romney wants a heart and herman cain is seeking courage, courage to face the fact that he's never going to be the republican nominee, no matter how well he does in the polls. he needs the courage to settle for something far better than the presidency -- his own show on fox. so the "talk back" question today -- is cain able to go the distance? facebook.com/carolcnn. i'll read your responses later this hour. >> okay. are you going to run that clip again that -- >> it's funny. it was "letterman." >> it was terrible to laugh. it is one of those uncomfortable moments. it's funny but should i be laughing at this? it's terrible. >> when that red stuff shoots out of herman cain's eyes, i'm sorry, that's funny. >> all right, carol, thanks so much. here's a rundown of some of

the stories we're covering over the next hour. first, president obama meets with south korea's president at the white house. we'll bring a joint news conference to you live. and how will the two countries' new free trade deal help or hurt american workers? then, heavy fighting in libya over gadhafi's tribal home of sirte. we'll have a report from the front lines. then later, the probe into "operation fast and furious" deepens. we'll take a closer look at why the attorney general has been subpoenaed. my doctor told me calcium

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we expect to see a joint news conference at the white house. the two leaders are cementing a long-awaited free trade agreement that was passed by congress last night. we'll bring you that news conference as soon as it happens. right now let's get more on the biggest u.s. trade deal in almost two decades now. so administration officials have touted the deal as a way to boost u.s. exports and create tens of thousands of jobs at home. how many jobs are we talking about? >> well, fredricka, of course this is the million dollar question because of course politicians and special interest groups love to come out with these numbers and have very different meth dollbies and don't necessarily reveal how they come up with those numbers. i can tell you, they are all over the map. the white house says the trade

deal will create tens of thousands of jobs. at the same time you've got the cham bier chamber of commerce saying hundreds of thousands of jobs. there's a big difference there. in reality it is really hard to predict but the general idea is that this is meant to be a job creation bill. democrats and republicans finally agreed on something and it will make it easier and cheaper to trade with south korea, colombia and panama. >> what kind of industries will be impacted by this trade agreement? >> well let's go through first car companies. we're seeing both in south korea and in the u.s. there could be some winners there and the deal specifically opens a door for more cars to go to south korea. the hope is that south korea will become the same. economies want some of those items when they improve. big demand for that. a lot of that food is going to colombia. chemical producers and construction equipment mainly

going to panama. that again as their economy picks up they need more construction goods. that industry is doing well. before we crack open the champagne, some critics are saying the deal could actually cost us jobs, more specifically in the textile industry. >> really. okay. let's look at the markets. we're seeing a sell-off. the dow was down quite a bit. >> right now it is down by 106 points. that's just a little under 1%. but remember this is quite normal. we had a nice day, nice rally yesterday so could be seeing investors selling, some profit taking right now. chase had a decent quarter there was concern going forward about how all these uncertainties in europe were going to impact their bottom line. financials were under pressure today with jpmorgan chase's stock down by a little under 7%. here's some expressed optimism from this trade

agreement with south korea. some american companies are already gearing up to start trading with that country. the cfo of a leading grapefruit company based in florida tells us the agreement will boost exports, pricing power, and that company's hiring plans. >> we're here in the packing area where we custom pack fruit that's shipped all over the world. our family business supports the free trade agreement with south korea because it is going to impact our business in the short term and in the long term with increased sales and hopefully better pricing. the idea would be providing access, better access to the south korean consumer which enjoys and appreciates the quality of florida citrus. it is a premium market for us and by expanding premium markets anywhere in the world, that tie lifts all votes. we might experience better pricing in all of our markets

worldwide by benefitting from a single market in south korea. it is a typical supply and demand equation. it offers fruit for the rest of the world, prices are inclined to be up in those areas. one of our goals is expanding our worldwide market share. we compete with lots of other countries for that market share. the free trade agreement also gives us a balanced, level playing field. >> we're extending our season, selling it for a better price allows us to re-invest in our grows primarily. that's not a short-term endeavor. from the day that we pull a trigger on planting new trees, it is about a ten-year proposition. it expensive and it is risky. but there's a lot of jobs that are in between there. once those trees are in the ground, besides the labor that -- for the nursery men and the fertilizer companies, there's a constant re-investment in that tree before it starts producing fruit. necklace agriculture, period, right, is a business that you

have to be passionate about. that's something for the weaker spirit, it is a challenge every day. any time the government to government relations can improve the ability for us to market in other countries is a pretty good thing for us. >> that's the expressed optimism from one american company on this agreement that has trade between south korea and the u.s. again we expect to see -- right here live picture -- press conference involving president barack obama and the south korean president any moment now. they are scheduled to hold this joint news conference talking in large part about that free trade agreement. it has been moved from the rose garden. it was very rainy out. now it is going to be in the east room. most people are now seated and poised ready for that to take place. the two leaders are cementing a long-awaited free trade agreement passed by congress just last night. we'll bring you that joint news conference as soon as it begins. ♪ they all bow down to you

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want to take you straight to the east room there at the white house. president barack obama and south korea's president. >> president lee back to the white house. we had a wonderful dinner last night at one of our outstanding local korean restaurants. michelle and i are looking forward to hosting the president and first lady kim at tonight's state dinner and today president lee will address congress. high honor reserved for america's closest friends. this state visit reflects the fact that the republican of

korea is one of our strongest allies. because we've stood together, the people of south korea from the ruins of war were able to build an economic miracle and become one of our largest trading partners creating jobs and opportunity for both our peoples. because we stood together, south koreans were able to build a strong and thriving democracy and become a partner in preserving security and freedom not only on the korean peninsula but beyond. as i said this morning, this visit also recognizes south korea's emergence as one of our key global partners. south koreans have served bravely with us in afghanistan and iraq. south korean forces have partnered with us to prevent piracy off the shores of africa and stem the spread of weapons of mass destruction. once a recipient of aid, south korea has become a donor nation

supporting development from asia to africa, and under the president's personal leadership seoul served as host to the g-20 summit last year and will host the next nuclear security summit next year. south korea's success is a tribute to the sacrifices and tenacity of the korean people. it's also a tribute to the vision and commitment of president lee. mr. president, you have shown how the international community should work in the 21st century. more nations bearing the responsibility of meeting global challenges. in the face of unprovoked attacks on your citizens, you and the south korean people have shown extraordinary strength, restraint and resolve. and i'd add that, in all of our dealings, president lee has shared my focus on what matters most -- the security and prosperity of our citizens. and that again has been our focus today. we agreed to move ahead quickly with the landmark trade agreement that congress passed last night and which i'll sign

in the coming days. it's a win for both our countries, for our farmers an ranchers here in the united states it will increase exports of agricultural products from aerospace to electronics, it will increase american manufacturing exports including those produced by our small businesses. it will open korea's lucrative services market and i'm very pleased that it will help level the playing field for american automakers. as a former executive, president lee will understand when i say that just as americans buy hyundais and kias, i hope that south koreans will buy more fords, chis lers aryslers and c. tomorrow president lee and i will visit automobile makers. this will add up to $11 billion and support some 70,000 american jobs. it has groundbreaking protections for labor rights, the environment, and

intellectual property. so the trade is free and fair. it will promote green jobs and clean energy another area where we are deepening our cooperation. and it keeps us on track to achieve my goals of doubling american exports. so president lee, thank you for your partnership in getting this deal done, a deal that will also be good for korean businesses and korean jobs. i look forward to working with you to bring it into force as quickly as possible. as we expand our economic cooperation we're also deepening our security cooperation. guided by our joint vision for the alliance, we agree to continue strengthening our capabilities to deter any threat. i can never say it enough -- the commitment of the united states to the defense and security of the republic of korea will never waver and as we have for decades, the united states will maintain our strong presence in the asia pacific which is a

foundation for security and prosperity in asia in the 21st century. in this regard, we discussed north korea which continues to pose a direct threat to the security of both our nations. on this, president lee are entirely united. together we've succeeded in changing the equation with the north by showing that its provocations will be met not with rewards but with even stronger sanctions and isolation. so the choice is clear for north korea. if pyongyang continues to ignore its international obligations, it will invite even more pressure and isolation. if the north abandons its quest for nuclear weapons and moves towards denuclearization, it will enjoy greater security and opportunity for its people. that's the choice that north korea faces. given the global nature of the alliances, president lee and i discussed the full chang range of challenges to our security and prosperity. i thank the president for south

korea's continued support for reconstruction in afghanistan and you updated him on the transition that is under way towards full afghan responsibility for security. we agreed to continue our support for democratic transitions in the middle east, north africa, including libya. we've agreed to coordinate more closely on the development that can lift people and nations out of poverty. i appreciated hearing the president's plan for next year's nuclear security summit which i look forward to attending, and as we approach the g-20 and apec summits next month, we agree on the need for coordinated global action that focused on growth and creates jobs for our workers. finally, we're strengthening the ties between our people. south korea's one of the top sources of international students studying in the united states and the number of american students who are studying in korea has been soaring. we've directed our teams to sustain this momentum and expand educational exchange between our

people. not unlike the one that once brought a visiting scholar named lee to an american university just blocks from here. so again, mr. president, i thank you for your partnership and your friendship and because of the progress we've made today, i'm confident that your visit will mark a turning back in the enduring alliance between our two nations. thank you very much. >> thank you. >> translator: thank you, mr. president. first of all, i thank president obama again for inviting me to make a state visit to the united states. my thanks goes out to the first lady as well. i am pleased to have had the chance to re-affirm once again the strong partnership and friendship between our two countries. i met with president obama six times over the last three years.

our meetings were always constructive allowing us to re-affirm the strength of our alliance, an alliance that is firmly based upon shared values and mutual trust. this alliance guarantees peace, stability and prosperity on the korean peninsula, the asia pacific region and beyond. we will continue to strengthen what is already a powerful and far-reaching alliance. i was privileged to have spent many hours with president obama during my visit to washington, d.c. this time discuss iing vie on a wide array of issues, including security on the peninsula and northeast asia region, trade and cooperation between our two countries, situation in the middle east including what is unfolding in libya, various international security issues and of course the global economy and the challenges that we face today. in particular we welcome the ratification of the korea-u.s. free trade agreement by the

united states congress. i am confident that the korean national assembly will soon ratify this very important agreement in the near future. i take this opportunity to sincerely thank president obama, the congressional leadership and members of congress for their support and commitment. korea-u.s. free trade agreement is an historic achievement that will become a significant milestone in our 130-year relationship. it is a win-win agreement that will benefit both of our countries in countless ways. this agreement will create more jobs, generate more trade and stimulate our economies. this free trade agreement will bring numerous benefits to our workers, our companies, our small businesses, and our consumers alike. furthermore, mutual investments will increase and our economic partnership will become stronger

and the course fta will bring ben futs beyond krefits beyond united states. it will be a gateway to enhansing ties between north america and asia. it will allow us to get ahead and stay ahead in the global markets. as we all know, the global economy is undergoing many challenges. the korea-u.s. free trade agreement will demonstrate to the world that we can create good quality jobs and stimulate growth through open and fair trade. this is a good example. the passage of the course fta has opened up a new chapter in our partnership, in our alliance. for the last 60 years we have maintained strong political-military alliance. now the course fta signifies an alliance that will strengthen and lift our military alliance to a whole new level. our alliance is evolving into a future oriented partnership and

it will become stronger. when president obama and i adopted the joint vision for the future of the alliance in 2009 we agreed to expand the depth and scope of our strategic alliance. today we re-affirmed our common commitment to a common future, a future of ensuring peace and stability on the korean peninsula and beyond, including the northeast asian region, our alliance will continue to play a pivotal role in overcoming the many global challenges that we face today. recently we were deeply shocked when we read the reports on the attempt to harm the saudi envoy here in washington, d.c. i and korean people strongly condemn all forms of terrorism

and as you can see already, our two countries are working to bring peace and ensure stability around the world. we are partners in iraq and afghanistan, we are safeguarding our vital sea links off the coast of somalia. today we also talked about the rebuilding of libya and bringing democracy and economic prosperity to a region wracked by violence and instability. we also agree to continue our work towards promoting universal values such as human rights, democracy and freedom across the word. in particular, we agree that korea and the united states will contribute to the economic development and administrative capacity building in libya, provide vocational training for its young people, troy medical care and rebuild and re-invest in its structure. we will coordinate our joint efforts with the united nations support mission in libya and the friends of libya meetings and our international partners.

we also talked about the worrying state of the global economy and how to overcome the pearls that emanated from the eurozone. the situation in europe is a source of grave concern we agreed to strengthen international cooperation through the g-20 so that the fiscal situation does not endanger the recovery of our real economies. in particular, our two countries agree to work together to bring back stability to our financial markets similar to what we did back in 2008. as we have done for the past three years, president obama and i will remain in complete agreement when dealing with north korea. our principled approach will remain steadfast. we agree that north korea's continued pursuit of nuclear weapons poses a serious threat to peace and stability of the korean peninsula and the world. we will continue to work towards

denuclearization in the peninsula. the second nuclear security summit will be held next march in seoul. during the summit we will review the progress made since the first summit in 2010 which was convened under the initiative of president obama. leaders will have one goal and that is to achieve our collective vision of a world free of nuclear weapons. i thank president obama and his able team for giving us their full support in the preparations of this summit, and of course will continue to work with him and i look forward to welcoming president obama and mrs. obama in seoul next year. thank you very much. >> we're going to start off with ed henry. >> thank you, mr. president. i appreciate it. president lee, i wanted to start with you. one question to each.

first, when you mentioned north korea, what concrete steps do you think the obama administration has helped to contain kim jong-il, and president obama i want your first reaction to the iranian terror plot. your secretary of state called it a dangerous escalation. what specific steps will you take to hold iran accountable? especially when mitt romney charged last week, quote, if you do not want america to be the strongest nation on earth, i am not your president. you have that president today." >> well, i didn't know that you were the spokesperson for mitt romney. but let me just talk about the plot in particular. we have a situation here where the attorney general has laid out a very specific set of facts. what we know is that an individual of iranian-american

decent was involved in a plot to assassinate the ambassador to the united states from saudi arabia. and we also know that he had direct links, was paid by, and directed by individuals in the iranian government. now those facts are there for all to see. and we would not be bringing forward a case unless we knew exactly how to support all the allegations that are contained in the indictment. so we have contacted all our allies. the international community. we've laid the facts before them and we believe that after people have analyzed them, there will not be a dispute that this is in fact what happened.

this is not just a dangerous escalation, this is part of a pattern of dangerous and reckless behavior by the iranian government. one of the principles of international behavior is that our diplomats, we send them around the world, that they are going to be protected. they are not targets for threats or physical violence. and for iran to have been involved in a plot like this indicates the degree to which it has been outside of accepted norms of international behavior for far too long. this is just one example of a series of steps that they've taken to create violence and to behave in a way that you don't see other countries doing. so with respect to how we

respond, our first step is to make sure that we prosecute those individuals that have been named in the indictment and i will leave to the attorney general the task of describing how that will proceed. the second thing that we're going to continue to do is to apply the toughest sanctions and continue to mobilize the international community to make sure that iran is further and further isolated and pays a price for this kind of behavior. keep in mind that when i came into office, i think iran saw itself as being able to play various countries against each other and avoid the kind of isolation that it deserved. since that time what we've seen, whether it relates to its nuclear program or its state-sponsored terrorism, that

more and more countries have been willing to speak out in forceful ways, whether through the united nations or through other avenues, to say this is not acceptable behavior. and it is having an impact. i mean what we've seen is iran's economy is in a much more difficult state now than it was several years ago, in part because we've been able to unify the international community in naming iran's misbehavior and saying that it's got to stop and there are going to be consequences to its actions. now we don't take any options off the table in terms of how we operate with iran, but what you can expect is that we will continue to apply the sorts of pressure that will have a direct impact on the iranian government until it makes a better choice in terms of how it is going to interact with the rest of the international community. there's great similarity between how iran operates and how north korea operates. a willingness on their part to

break international rules, to flount international norms, to not live up to their own commitments and each time they do that, the united states will join with its partners and allies in making sure that they pay a price. and i think that you have to emphasize that this plot was not simply directed at the united states of america. this is a plot that was directed against the saudi ambassador and i think that what you're going to see is folks throughout the middle east region question their ability to work effectively with iran. this builds on the recognition within the region that iran in fact has been hypocritical when it comes to dealing with the arab spring given their own repressive activities inside their country.

their willingness to prop up the syrian regime at a time when they're killing their own citizens. this is a pattern of behavior that i think increasingly the international community is going to consider out of bounds and is going to continue to punish iran for. unfortunately, the iranian people are the ones that probably suffer the most from this regime's behavior and we will continue to work to see how we can bring about an iranian government that is actually responsive to its people but also following the rules of the road that other countries in the international community follow. >> translator: thank you. to answer your question about north korea, first of all, president obama and i for the last three years, we have

maintained very close praying and coordination and cooperation when it comes to north korea policy. we have consistently applied our principled approach towards north korea. for north korea, the only way to ensure happiness for its people and to embark on that path to development is to abandon its nuclear ambitions. and so we have tried through peaceful means, through diplomatic means to strongly urge north korea to abandon its nuclear ambitions. and in this day and age we realize that no single country can be effective in achieving its diplomatic aims on its own. we know that cooperation is vital in order for a country to become a responsible member of the international community

which is something that we want for north korea. and so we would of course want north korea to abandon its nuclear ambitions and of course korea and the united states will continue to consistently apply a principled approach so that we can achieve our strategic objective and when it comes to cooperation between our two governments, we speak with one voice and we will continue to speak with one voice and it was a chance for me to re-affirm this today. >> translator: my name is kim. "daily news." i know that president lee is talking about a south korea-north korea-russia gas pipeline project but north korea is also under a lot of sanctions from the international community and the united states and other

countries. but having said that, if this gas line project proceeds as planned, then we would have to provide or compensate north korea with substantial amount of money or other forms of compensation. so in your opinion, president lee, do you think that the gas line pipeline project will be able to proceed without resolve ing the south korea-north korea nuclear issue? >> translator: yes, thank you. i don't know if that's a question i should be answering here in the united states, but since you asked the question, i'll try to answer it. in the far east, we've been discussing this issue for quite some time and trying to import russia gas into the republic of

korea. we are discussing right now with the north koreans whether the russian gas which is quite affordable, can travel through north korea and be imported and used in south korea. this is beneficial, first of all, for russians because they can sell their natural resource. for north korea it would be beneficial because they could use this natural resource and also beneficial for south korea as well. but let me just remind you that south korea, north korea and russia haven't yet come together to discuss this issue in any detail. but from an economic standpoint of view it is beneficial for all parties involved but i understand this issue is not just economics alone. this issue inevitably involves security matters which we will consider very close ly and also let me remind you that this project will not be implemented any time soon.

of course we are mindful of the progress that we are making with regards to north korean nuclear issue as well. >> thank you, mr. president. first briefly to follow on ed, if i may, on the iran alleged terror plot, do you have knowledge or do you believe that the nation's supreme leader and president had knowledge of the plot? and if so, do you not see that as an act of war? and if i could turn to the economy, yesterday in a campaign video you said that you will force congress to take up individual pieces of the american jobs act. which pieces would you like to see them take up first, and given that so far you've been unable to force congress to do an up or down vote on the entire bill, and that new unemployment filings are not falling, why not now sit down with members of congress to see if you can't reach compromise on something that could pass now and create jobs quickly? >> okay. first of all, on the iranian

issue, the attorney general's put forward the facts with respect to the case and i'm going to let him comment on the details of those facts. what we can say is that there are individuals in the iranian government who are aware of this plot. and had it not been for the outstanding intelligence work of our intelligence officials, this plot could have gone forward and resulted not only in the death of the saudi ambassador but also innocent civilians here in the united states. we believe that even if at the highest levels there was not detailed operational knowledge, there has to be accountability with respect to anybody in the iranian government engaging in this kind of activity.

and so we will continue the investigation. we will continue to put forward all the facts that we have available to us, but the important thing is for iran to answer the international community, why anybody in their government is engaging in these kinds of activities, which as i indicated before, are out of bounds for not just a country like iran that historically has been engaging in these kinds of activities, but violates basic principles of how diplomats have dealt with for centuries. now with respect to the jobs bill, i have said repeatedly that the single most important thing we can do for the economy right now is put people back to work right now.

and we have put forward a jobs bill that independent economists -- not my team, not my administration -- have said would grow the economy substantially and put up to 1.9 million people back to work. these are proposals that historically have been supported not just by democrats but also by republicans. as i've traveled around the country, i don't know when rebuilding our roads an bridges that are decaying suddenly became a partisan issue. and i was at a jobs council meeting up in pittsburgh with ceos from companies across the board, many of whom have been traditional supporters, chamber of commerce, business roundtable and other organizations that republican party's claimed a lot of support for. they said, for example, when it came to infrastructure, this is something that anybody in washington should agree to.

the republicans haven't given a good answer as to why they have not agreed to wanting to rebuild our roads, our bridges and our schools. they have not given us a good reason as to why they don't want to put teachers back in the classroom. so what we're going to do is we're going to break each of these bills apart. we're going to say, let's have a vote on putting teachers back in the classroom. let's have a vote on rebuilding our infrastructure. let's have a vote on making sure that we are keeping taxes low for small businesses and businesses that are willing to hire veterans, provide tax breaks for further investment that can create jobs, and each time we're going to ask republicans to support the bill. if they don't want to support the bill they've got to answer not just to us but also the american people as to why they wouldn't. now i think this trade deal that we just passed, the korea free

trade act shows that we are happy to work with republicans where they are willing to put politics behind the interests of the american people and come up with proposals that are actually going to create jobs. the korea free trade act we believe will create up to 70,000 jobs. we got good strong bipartisan support. frankly we have not seen a lot of ideas coming forward from republicans that would indicate that same kind of economics to job creation. if they do, if senator mcconnell or speaker boehner say to me, you know what? we want to get some infrastructure built in this country. we think that putting construction workers back to work is important, i'll be right there. we'll be ready to go. if they are willing to renew the payroll tax as we worked on together in december, i'll be ready to go. i don't think the problem here, jessica, is that i have not been

unwilling to negate with republicans. i've shown repeatedly my willingness to work overtime to try to get them to do something to deal with this high unemployment rate. what we haven't seen is a similar willingness on their part to try to get something done. we're not going to wait around and play the usual political games here in washington because the american people are desperate for some relief right now. i think any time and any place that they are serious about working on putting people back to work we'll be prepared to work with them but we're not going to create a lot of theater that then results in them engaging in the usual political talking points but don't result in action.

people want action and i'm prepared to work with them but again, the last time i was here at a press conference i asked you guys to show us the republican jobs plan that independent economists would indicate would actually put people back to work. i haven't yet seen it. and so eventually i'm hoping that they actually put forward some proposals that indicate that they feel that sense of urgency about people and need to put people back to work right now. all right, jessica. you can't have four follow-ups. one is good. >> translator: from koreansyste.

i have two questions for president obama. yesterday u.s. congress rectified the korea-u.s. fta, but korean national assembly didn't pass it yet. and korean opposition party is requesting re-re-negotiation on the fta. what's your opinion and prospect on the future of the korea-u.s. fta? and my second question is about libya and north korea. in libya, there was a people's uprising and they change their governments. and do you think such an event will be possible in north korea in the near future? thank you. >> well first of all, president lee assures me that the fta will pass through the national

assembly. i have great confidence in his leadership. and my expectation is that it will get done. because it is good for both countries businesses will be able to prosper here in the united states as a consequence of lowering many of these trade barriers. the same will be true in korea. our workers will benefit and we can learn from each other and i think this is one more sign of the close cooperation and friendship between our two peoples. you're absolutely right that what we've seen in the arab spring in libya, in tunisia, in egypt, is this deep longing on the part of people for freedom and opportunity. and although the path from dictatorship to democracy is

always uncertain and fraught with danger, what we've seen also is that that human spirit eventually will defeat repressive governments. so i don't want to predict when that might happen. i think that obviously the people of north korea have been suffering under repressive policies for a very long time and none of us can look at a crystal ball and know when suddenly that type of government collapses on its own. what we know though is that what people everywhere -- whether it is in korea or the united states or libya or africa -- what

people everywhere are looking for is the ability to determine their own destiny, to know that if they work hard, that they will be able to be rewarded, that they can speak their mind, they can practice their religion in freedom, that they can enjoy the free flow of information that increasingly characterizes the 21st century. and i don't think that the people of north korea are any exception and i think when they see the extraordinary success and progress that's been made in south korea, i think inevitably that leads them to recognize that a system of markets and democracy and freedom is going to give their children, their grandchildren more opportunity than the system that they're currently under. all right. thank you very much, everybody.